Submarine escapement-tube.



W. C. MCDOUGALL. SUBMARINE ESCAPEMENT TUBE.

APPLICATION F|LED APR. 28, 1915 Patented July 17, 1917.

2 SHEETSSHEETI W. C. MCDOUGALL.

SUBMARINE ESCAPEMENT TUB E.

APPLICATION FILED APH.28, 1915.

Patented July 17, 1917.

2 SHEETSSHE ET 2.

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WILLIAM G. MGDOUGALL, 0F PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA.

' SUBMA'RINE ESCAPEMENT-TUBE,

To all whom it may concern: 1

Be it known that lNILLI M G. MoDoUeALL, citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing at Hazelwood Station, Pittsburgh, in the county ofAllegheny and- State of Pennsylvania, has invented certain nlewanduseful Improvements in SubmarineEscapemer t-Tubes, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in submarines andmoreparticularly to a submarine escapement tube, and the primary objectof the invention is to provide an improved device of this characterwhich will readily enable the occupants of a submer ed submarine toescape to the surface of the water one at a time.

A further object of the invention resides in the provision of anapparatus involving the principle of a hollow inclosed tube lighter thanwater, which of a necessity,

rises to the surface of a body of water when its operating chamber;

disposed therein. 1

Still another object of. the invention resides in providing a devicewhich is so con structedas to be crawn within the shell of the submarineafter rising to the surface permitting one individual to escapetherefrom and a further obj ect resides in providing an apparatus inconnection therewith to enable the last occupant of the submarine toalso readily escape without the help of others. I

A still further object resides in providing a device which is. simpleand durable in construction, comparatively inexpensive to manufacture,one which may be applied .to any submarine now in use and further onewhich will be very eificient and useful in operation. I 7

With these and other objects in view my invention consists in the novelfeatures of construction, combination and arrangement of parts as willbe here nafter referred to and more particularly pointed out in thespecification and claims. r

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application, i

Figure 1 is a detailed section through an apparatus constructed inaccordance with my invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional viewthrough the escapement tube. removed from Spe fi of Letters Patent.Patented July 17, 1917. Application filed April 28, 1915. Serial No.24,467.

line 3 3 of Fig. 2;

Fig.4 is a similar view as seen on the line L-d of Fig. 2, looking inthe direction of the arrow; i

Fig. 5 is a section as seen on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3, and

Fig. 6 is a detailed section through a portron. of the operating meansfor one of the Flg. 3 is a transverse section seen on the gate valves,in the tube chamber.

a mouth or the like therefor, the purpose of which willbe hereinafterand more particularly set forth. Secured to and depend ing from theinner face of the submarine shell and surrounding the opening 2 thereinis a tube-like chamber l which projects to a plane a short distanceabove the bottom of the submarine and the upper and lower portions ofsaid chamber are formed of removable sections as designated at 5 and-6respectively. In connection with these sections 5 and 6 are thelaterally projecting tubular arms 7 and 8 respectively whichcarr theupper and lower gateyalves 9 an 10. These gate valves are of the usualor any preferred type used in connection with such apparatus and thesame are carried on the ends of the operating rods 11, the actuation ofwhich will be described hereinafter.

Thetubular arms 7 and 8 have the intermediate portions thereof providedwith packed guide bearings 12 as clearly shown in Fig. l of thedrawingswhich slidably receive therein the operating rods 11. The outer ends ofthese rods 11 are threaded as shown at 13 and are engaged with elongatednuts 14, which are rotatably engaged with the outer. ends of the arms 7and 8 as shown in detail in 'Fig- 6 0f the rawings. These jected fromthe shell 1. The gear1 6 at the lower portion of the apparatus, however,is

20. The gear 17 meshes with a similar pinion 21 on an additionaloperating shaft 22. The shafts 20 and 22 are supported on brackets 23which are projected from the tube-like chamber 4, and the inner ends ofsaid shafts and 22 project through packed bearings 24 on the chamber 4to extend within thelatter, those portions of the shafts which projectwithin the chamber being reduced and squared as shown at 25, forapurpose to be hereinafter and more particularly set forth. It will beseen that the gate valves 9 and 10 may be operated independently, withinthe shell of the submarine by a Zmere actuation of the shafts 20 and 22,and

crank arms 26 are provided for the actuation of saidshafts. 7

My invention primarily contemplates the provision of a device whichthrough its own buoyancy may be ejected from the submarine to rise tothe surface of the water, and in carrying out this idea, I provide atube or the like 29. This tube is constructed of .metal of any desiredsize and weight accord ing to the predetermined pressure and the chamber4, above described, forms a chamber for the reception of said tube.

This tube is of a size to enable a man of ordinary dimensions to readilyenter the same, and the upper and lower edges thereof are bent inwardlyto form annular flanges 28, the latter being provided with openings atpredetermined points through which are.

disposed the longitudinal stay-rods 29. Se-

- cured to the upper projecting ends of the rods 29 by means of nuts 30is a dome-like member 31 which may be formed of aluminum or otherlight'metal, the inner periphery of which is provided with a dependingthreaded flange 32. A plurality of openings are provided in the flange28 for the purpose of riveting the dome 31 thereto, which openings areclearly disclosed in Fig. 3 of the drawings. Engaged with this threadedportion 32 is an externally threaded collar 33 which is designed to forma valve seat for a valve disk 34. The latter has a depending flange 35provided at its upper edge adapted to seat upon an angular upper portionof the member 33, and mounted on this angular portion, last referred to,is a gasket 36,

whereby to provide an absolutely watertight connection between the seatand valve disk, as appears obvious from the showing in Fig. 2. The valvedisk 34 is internally I threaded and has threaded into engagementtherewith a cap member 37, the latter having a flexible connection 38engaged therewith, which connection is alsoengaged wlth the dome-likemember 31, to prevent the entire removal of the valve and the'cap memberfrom the tube.

It is'obvious from the description of the upper closure of the tube 27that the valve diskiscarried directly on the cap member and it may behere stated that the valve with the cap member is locked in place andremoved from the inside. To lock the cap member with the valve in place,a stem 38 is provided on the cap member which depends therefrom and hasits inner end threaded as at 39. A diametrical bar or strip 40 isprovided at the upper end of the tube, being hinged at its one end asdesignated at 41 to the flange 28 and is locked in place at its otherend by a locking member 42. This diametrical strip has a slot 4-3centrally thereof, through which the stem 38 is disposed and a nut 44 isengaged with the threaded end 39 of the stem 38, which nut is adaptedfor engagement with the under face of the strip 40 whereby to lock thevalve with the cap member thereon in place on the tube.

Entrance is had to the tube 27 from the bottom and the closure for thelatter is somewhat similar to that described in connection with theupper end. The stay-rods 29 project through the lower flange 28 of thetube and are engaged by nuts 45 which tend to retain in place theannulus 46, the inner periphery of which is bent inwardly as shown at47. However, this annulus 46 is further secured in place to the flange28 by being riveted thereto as clearly shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings.Threaded into engagement with this portion 47 is a collar which forms avalve seat 48 for the reception of a valve disk 49. This valve seat anddisk valve 48 and 49 respectively are of similar construction to themembers 33 and 34 described above and a gasket 50 is provided at thispoint. The disk valve 49 has its inner periphery also threaded andengaged with a cap member 51 through. the central portion of which isdisposed a stem 52. This stem is rotatably supported. on a Tbracket-like portion 52 also carried on the cap member and a packedbearing is pro vided in the cap member, through which the stem 52 isdisposed. The inner end of the stem 52 is threaded and disposed througha slot in a hinged strip 54 supported on the inner walls of the lowerportion of the tube 27, and a nut 55 is engaged with the inner end ofsaid stem, whereby to draw the latter inwardly and correspondingly lockthe valve with the cap member in place on the lower portion of the tube.It is apparent that this lower structure may be locked in place from theoutside or inside, as desired, and for the purpose of looking it fromthe outside, a knurled head 56 is provided on the outer end of the stem52.

It is obvious that when this tube member is properly closed from bothends, the same is substantially hermetically sealed,

and it is apparent that when submerged in water it will of itsown accordrise to the surface, which discloses the main object of the invention.-7 However, it is apparent that but one individual at atime-may escapethrough this tube and" it ismecessary to withdraw the same fromthesubmarine afteronce reaching-the surface and permitting the individualtherein toescape. I have, therefore provided an apparatus for thewithdrawal of the tube to its chamber, andin order to prevent the lowerclosure structure from becomingfouled, impeded or held in anyway whenwithdrawingthe tube in its chamberahood-57 is provided. This hood memberis of-somewh-at' dome-like design andis offset in portions as shown at-58. The offset portions are provided with openings throughwhicharedisposed the lower projecting threaded ends of the stay-rods 29 and nutsorthe like 59 are engaged therewith. This hoodi member is of courseapplied to the tube from within the submarine and cables 60 are providedwhich are also engaged with-the lowerendsofsaid-stayrods and heldtheretoby means of the nuts 59. These cables are drawntogeth er just below thecentral portion of the hood and are combined into a-single cablewhich'after being drawn overrollers 61 and'62 atthe lower portion. of the tubechamber 4, is wound upon aereel'63'. Thisreel is mount edina casingfitsecured-to the lower portion ofithe chamber 4, as clearly shown in 1 ofthe drawings. It is apparentfrom thisconstruction, therefore, that when;the tube reaches the surfaceof I the water and occupant releases himselftherefrom the said tube may be withdrawn by operating the reel. 63 andthe dome-like hood 57 will readily enter the funnel shapedmouthfiofthechamber 4, so that. said tube may be again positionedfor the entranceof a second individual. Inthis. connection it may bestatedthat atelephone 65 is provided in the tube 27, the connectingwire for which isthrough one ofcthe cables '60. Thus when the. tube reaches the surface.of the water and the occupantsis aboutxto escape. therefrom, he maynotifythosewithin the submarine to withdraw. the tube. f

Secured to the. inner wall of the chamber l'adjacentthe. lower. endthereofare a plu. rality of supporting lugs 66. which. are adapted to bereceivedinrecesses. or the like (notshown) in the lower portion. of thetube alternating with theaoft'sets 58Iin.thebhood 57. A small=pipe line67- is also provided which leads. from: the shell: 1, through the wall aof the chamber. 4, and a hand operate ingvalve 6.8 is provided inconnection therewith, whereby to admit waterto the chamberxlebeforereleasing the tube therein. This. is for the purpose of testingtheconnections at the. aclosures .of the, tube.

As lon-g-asthere is one person still remainingiin the submarineshellthis apparatus may be operatedi fromv within said: shell, but when theman last to leave the shell enters the tube itbecomes necessary for himto closethetub'e and operate the valves from withinsaid tube. Inorder-to operate said gate valves 9 and 10 from with-in the tube, I haveprovidedwhat may be termed wrench members 69 which have the heads.thereof mounted on the outer wall of 'thetube .and provided in sockets70 for engagement with the squared ends 25 of the shafts 20and 22.Theheads of these wrench members are carried on stems which arerotatably mount ed in acked bearings 71 in the .wall of=the tube 2 theinner ends of said stems beingsquared :as shown at 72 for engagementwith a hand wrenchto lee-carried within the tube by the last man toenter same. hen the tube 27 is supported on the member. 66, the socketsof the wrench members are at all times in the same horizontal planeswith the ends 25 .ofthe shafts 20 and 22 so that said wrenches. may bereadily engagedwith said squared ends, by merely positioning thewrenches inalinement therewith. and forcing the tube to .one side ofthebch'amber l. Inorder to .force thetube toone side of the chamber 4,.a pair offhandi operated plunger members 72 are. providedonthe one sideof'the tube 27, the samehaving threaded connection with the wall of thetube and asimilar pair ofplungers 73 are providedonthe opposite sideofthetube, to disconnect the wrenches 6.4 from the ends 25 of the shaftswhenitis desired topermitthe tube to ascend. These plungermemblersoperatein threaded. openings of. the, tube and; are mounted inconnectionwith packing boxes 74 whereby to. provide watertightconnections.

It is. well understood that: the pressure of. water varies according tothe .depth be.- low the surface reached andas statedheretofore, I desireto construct a tube. 2701:. such metal aswillwithstand the pressure of.a predetermined amount. However, I' have provided. a water and pressuregage 75 on the tube 27 which will be of convenienceto those in thesubmarine.

In the normaljposition ofthe .device, the tube 27, with its closuresproperly applied thereto, is; held supported on the members 66 in thechamber 4:. and the gate valves. 9 and 10 are in closed position, asshown in Fig. 1 of the drawings. Should for any rea-. son.whatsoever thesubmarine be unable to rise to the surface of the water anditbecomenecessary or desirable that: the occu-y pantsof said submarine escapetherefrom,

this apparatus may be immediately and whereupon the hood .57 and thebottom closure of the tube is removed. A man then enters the tube headfirst and it will be seen that the diametrical strip or plate 54 at thelower portion of the tube being hinged at one end will immediately admitsuch person. The occupant stands erect in the tube and rests his feet onthe flange 28 at the lower portion of the tube or on the inner edges ofthe members47 and 28. The valve disk 49 with the cap 51 thereon is thenapplied to the valve seatloy' the occupants of the submarine and theoccupant of the tube fits the stem 52 through the strip 54 and inengagement withthe nut 55. The lower closure is then looked in place byturning upon the head 56 and in view of the gasket 50 between the valvedisk and the valve seat, an air-tight connection at the lower portion ofthe tube is thus provided. It is assumed that the upper closure for thetube 27 has been properly applied prior to the entrance of the occupanttherein, but in order to make certain of the matter said occupantoperates on the nut 44 to draw the upper valve disk 34 and cap member 37in closed water-tight connection. While this is being done by theoccupant of the tube, the remaining occupants of the submarine apply thehood member 57 to the lower ends of the stayrods 29, whereby to coverthe entire operating structure of the lower closure. It will be ofcourse understood that in the applica tion of the hood 57 in place, thecables 60 are also properlyengaged to the stay-rods.

WVhen the occupant of the tube is safely locked therein, and ready toascend, he so advises the occupants of the submarine through the mediumof the telephone 65. The'submarine occupants thereupon open the valve 68in the pipe line 67 whereby to admit water to the chamber 4, it being ofcourse understood that prior to the opening of this valve, the gatevalve 10 has been properly closed. The chamber 4 is thus illed slowlywith water prior to the open ing of the valve 9 in order to test theconnections at the top and bottom of the tube to make certain that sameis entirely watertight. The occupant of the tube then advises theoccupants of the submarine through the medium of the telephone as to theconditions and when all is ready the shaft 22 is operated from withinthe submarine to open the gate valve 9. The tube 27 will immediatelystart to rise through its own buoyancy, and in rising will draw upon thecables 62, which, as stated previously, are drawn together to form asingle flexible connection which is wound upon the reel 63. Any tendencythat this tube 27 might have to upset or otherwise reverse its positionwill be prevented by this cable connection which will have the sameeffect on the tube asatail tea kite. When the tube:

reaches the surface of the water, the domelike upper portion thereofwill be above the surface of the water in view of its lightness and theoccupant operates upon the nut 44 to release the connection on the stem38. With his own strength he forces open the upper closure consisting ofthe valve disk 34 and the cap member 37, thus opening the upper end ofthe tube and in view of the various connections along the inner wall ofthe tube he may climb upwardly therein and make his exit through theupper opening. It is of course understood that every occupant of thetube is provided with a life belt so that upon reaching the surface, hemay, if no assistance is awaiting, jump out upon the water and eitherswim ashore or swim to such assistance as may be found.

After the occupant of the tube makes his exit therefrom, he places thedisk valve with the cap thereon back in place and through friction fromits own weight the latter will fit tightly in position thereon. Justprior to the exit of the man from the tube, he advises the occupants ofthe submarine through the medium of the telephone that he is about toleave the tube and the occupants of said submarine allow a predeterminedamount of time for the removal of the occupant of the tube. When thispredetermined amount of time has expired, the tube is withdrawn bywinding up on the reel (33. In this manner the tube is again drawn inthe chamber 4 and seated upon the supporting member 66. The gate valve 9is then closed by operating upon the shaft 22 and the gate valve 10 isopened by operating upon the shaft 20. Of course, a small amount ofwater in the chamber 4 will fiow through the submarine shell, but thismay be readily pumped therefrom. By removing the hood and lower closureof the tube, the apparatus is then ready for the escape of a secondoccupant of a submarine. The operation is continued as above describeduntil the last man remains in the submarine.

When the last man in the submarine desires to make his escape, the gatevalve 9 of course is closed prior to the opening of the gate valve 10whereupon the hood 57 and the lower closure of the tube 27 are removed.The tube 27 is then positioned so that the sockets of the wrenches 69thereon are in position to register with the squared ends 25 of theshafts 20 and 22. The last man then enters the tube and draws inposition the valvedisk 49 with the cap 51 thereon and the said valvedisk and cap are locked in place from the inside by turning upon the nut55. When the lower closure is properly locked in place by the turning ofthe nut 34, the occupant of the tube operates the hand plunger 7 2 toforce the latter outwardly. By forcing outwardly, these plungers contactwith the wall of the chamber 4: and force the tube 27 in a positiontoward the ends25 of the shafts 20 and 22. The tube having been properlypositioned in the chamber prior to the entrance of the last man therein,the forcing over of said tube to one side of the chamber will enablesaid ends 25 of the shafts to fit within the sockets 70 of the Wrenches69:- After positioning the tube so that the wrenches will look upon thesquared ends 25 of the shafts, the plungers 7 2 are permitted to remainscrewed tight against the wall of the chamber 4:, and the hand wrenchwhich is carried within the tube by the last man is applied to the lOWerwrench 69 and operated so as to close the gate valves 10. The handwrench is then applied to the upper wrench 69 of the tube which willcause the upper gate valve 9 to be opened, whereupon water rushes intothe chamber 4. As this chamber 4 fills with water, the tendency will beto cause the tube 27 to rise, but in view of the frictional engagementof the plungers 72 With the Wall of the chamber 4;, as just mentioned,it will be impossible for the wrenches 69 to become disengaged from theends 25 of the shafts 20 and 22, until such time as the plungers 7 2 arerestored to their normal positions. The plungers 73, which. are providedfor the purpose of disengaging the wrenches 69 from the ends of theshafts 20 and 22, are screwed outwardly into engagement with the wallof'the chamber 4, which operation forces the wrenches from engagementwith the squared ends 25 of the shafts and the tube will rise to thesurface.

, The tube is so constructed as to have its greatest weight at thebottom so as not to be top heavy, and thus all posslbility of upsettingor reversing itself w1ll be prevented. Of course, in the ascension ofthe tube with the last man therein, the cables are not applied, inasmuchas they can only be applled from within the submarine. When the tubewith the last man therein reaches the surface of the water, he may makehis exit therefrom as is done ordinarily and he may of course beassisted by the other parties who previously made their escape. It w1llbe seen that in the escape of the last man all operation is carried onfrom within the tube and this operation is equally as slmple andeffective as though operated from outside the tube, and within thesubmarine.

I have described my apparatus as belng an escapement tube for submarmes,but 1t 1s readily apparent that the same may be used as an observingtube being earned by submarines as an auxiliary attachment and used inplace of the Periscope in the event the p'eriscope on the submarine hasbeen shot away, or when it is uncertain as to whether or not it would besufficiently safe to rise near enough the surface of the water to usethe periscope. It is a well known fact that the greatest danger to asubmarine is when ascending to the. surface for the purpose of using theperiscopc, for a hostile ship whiclr might be near at hand, would findit an-easy matter to rain the submarinebefore the latter could submerge,whereas, the tube with an observing apparatus adj acent theupper' endthereof, it will be pos sible" for the submarine to rest on the bed ofthe harbor and use this device as a means of obtaining the range ofhostile ships, and in general in place of the periscope. Moreover, thisdevice may be used as a means for dis charging torpedoes, it beingassumed that the tube is equipped with the necessary apparatus therefor,and should a hostile craft appear, it would be a simple matter for theman in the tube to notify the man below in the submarine, through themedium of the telephone, whereby the tube may be submerged within a fewseconds.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that I have provided asimple,inexpensive and eflicient means for carrying out the objects ofthe invention and while I have particularly described the elements bestadapted to perform the functions set forth, it is obvious that variouschanges in the form, proportion and in the minor details of constructionmay be resorted to, within the scope of the appended claims, withoutdeparting from the spirit or sacrificing any of the principles of theinvention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent, is

1. In an apparatus of the class described, a vertical chamber havinggate valves at the upper and lower ends thereof, a tubular memberadaptedfor reception in said chamber, removable closures for the upper andlower ends of said tubular member, means for operating said gate valvesfrom outside of the chamber and additional means for operating saidvalves from within the tube when the latter is disposed within thechamher.

2. In an apparatus of the class described, a vertical chamber, gatevalves at the ends of said chamber, a tubular member adapted to bereceived therein, removable closures for the upper and lower endsthereof, means for locking said closures from within the tube,additional means for locking the lower closure from outside the tube,and means for operating the gate valves-at the ends of the chamber.

3. In an apparatus of the class described, a vertical chamber, gatevalves at and lower ends thereof, a tubular member adapted to bereceived in said chamber, removable closures for the upper and lowerends of said tubular member, means for locking the closures from withinthe tubular member, additional means for locking the the upper byequipping lower closurefroln outside the tubular nieln- In testimonywhereof I aflix my signatm'e ber, means for actuating the gate valvesfrom in the presence of two Witnesses. outside the chamber andadditional means WILLIAM C. MoDOUG-ALL. for actuating said Valves fromWithiIlthG Witnesses:

5 tubularmember when the latter is disposed W. J. WHITE, Within thechamber. 7 P. LoWRY.

Copies of this patent may be obtainedfor five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, I). O.

